Scarlett
was in a dark place, but someone was nudging her, trying to draw her
back into the light. Unwillingly she opened her eyes to find a boy
leaning over her, shaking her awake. She recognized him at once and
knew that the fact he was with her, that he was bruised and
disheveled, could mean only one thing, . . . and it was the worst
news of all. He was here because of her. The Old Ones must have
tricked him into coming to Hong Kong, and know the two of them were
prisoners. Scarlett felt a sense of great anger and bitterness. She
had been drawn into this against her will. And it was already over.
She Had never been given a chance.

"Matt
. . ." she said.

At
last the two of them were together. But this wasn't how she had hoped
they would meet. She drew herself into a sitting position and rubbed
her eyes. They had given her back her own clothes, but her hair cut
short was still unfamiliar to her. At least she had lost the contact
lenses. She had taken them out the moment she had been left to her
self. Despite everything she found herself thinking that Matt was
very handsome and had broad shoulders but quickly shook the thought
away blushing slightly hoping the dirt covered the blush.

"Are
you okay?" Matt asked.

"No."
She sounded miserable."How long have I been asleep?"

"I
don't know. They only brought me here an hour ago."

"When
was that?"

"About
eight o' clock."

"Night
or day?"

"Day."

Matt
examined his surroundings. They were in a bare, windowless with brick
walls and a concrete floor. The only light came from a bulb set in a
wire mesh cage. From the moment solid steel door had been closed and
locked, he'd had to fight a sense if claustrophobia. They were deep
underground. The police had brought him here had forced him down four
flight's of stairs and then along a corridor that was like a tunnel.
Ordinary policemen. The same as the ones who had arrested him. It
seemed that the shape-changers, the fly soldiers, and all the other
creatures of the Old Ones had decided to leave Hong Kong. He Wondered
why.

Despite
everything, he had been relived to find Scarlett who he had noticed
looked beautiful dirt and all. She looked very different from the
photograph he had seen of her not in a bad way (she somehow made it
work for her) he was too tired to blush but if he wasn't he was sure
he would have. He couldn't imagine what it must have been like for
her, being stuck here on her own.

"Why
are you here?" Scarlett asked. She still couldn't keep the slight
excitement from her voice.

"I
came for you." Mat said. He wanted to tell her more, but he didn't
dare. There was always a chance they were being listened to.

"You
shouldn't have. I've ruined everything. I'd have gotten away if I
hadn't . . ." Scarlett stopped herself. She couldn't bring herself
to talk about her last meeting with her father.

Matt
sat next to her so that they were shoulder to shoulder with their
legs stretched out on the floor. From the way he moved, she could see
that he had been hurt. He looked pale and exhausted. "Why don't you
tell me everything that happened to you?" he suggested. "You
could start by telling me where we are. Do you know?"

She
nodded. "the chairman came to see me . . . ."

"Who
is the chairman?"

"Just
some creep in as suit."

"I
think I might have met him."

"He
wanted to gloat over me," Scarlett continued. "He told me that
you were on your way, but I'd hoped he was lying. This is an old
prison. We're right in the middle of Hong Kong. It was left over from
Victorian times."

"So
when do they serve breakfast?"

"They
don't. It's bread and cold soup, and they bring it once a day. And
the bread is usually burned." She thought she saw a flicker of a
smile on his lips but dismissed it.

Matt
lowered his voice "Hopefully we wont be here that long," he said.
It was as much as he dared tell her, but even so, Scarlett felt a
glimmer of hope. "You know I went to your home in Dulwich," he
said, changing the subject.

"Was
that you in the car? There was an accident – "

"It
was no accident."

"I
knew it had to be you," Scarlett said. "They planned it all out
very carefully, didn't they? Using me to get you here. Are any of the
others with you?"

Matt
nodded briefly and Scarlett understood. They both had to be careful
about what they said. She gazed at him as if seeing him for the first
and last time. "I can't believe you're here. I can't believe I'm
really talking to you. Do you know, I've even dreamed about you."

"Don't
worry about it," Matt said. "We all dream about each other. It's
the way it works."

"There
so much I don't understand."

"Join
the club."

"Looks
like I already have." She took a deep breath. "I don't know where
my story even begins, but I suppose I'd better start with St.
Meredith's. . . ."

She
told him – briefly and without fuss – and as she spoke, Matt knew
he was going to like her. She had been through so much, and in a way
her experiences Reminded him of his own at Lesser Malling, the way
she had been reeled into something completely beyond her
understanding. And she had coped with it. She had been brought here.
She had been locked in this room for three days. But she hadn't
cracked. She was ready to fight back.

She
finished talking, and it seemed to Matt that just for a moment the
building trembled as something, a shock wave, traveled through the
walls. Scarlett looked up, alarmed. Part of her knew what was
happening and was expecting it.

"What?"
Matt began.

"It
was nothing." She said so hastily he could see she didn't want to
talk about it, didn't even want to imagine what was happening
outside. "Tell me about yourself," She went on quickly. "Tell
me how you got here. Did you go to the temple? They've got people
waiting for you. They thought you'd come through one of the doors."

"I
didn't."

He
told his own story, or part of it, starting in Peru. It would have
taken to long to tell her the whole thing, and he was still afraid of
being overheard. From Nazca to London to Macao . . . It had been a
long journey, and it was only now that they both saw how closely they
had been following each others paths.

Matt
finished by explaining how he had found his way to Wisdom Court. This
was the difficult part. He had seen Scarlett's father die, and he had
been at least in part responsible. How was he going to break the
news?

But
she was already ahead of him "That shirt your wearing," She said.
She had suddenly realized. "It's his."

Matt
nodded. He didn't want to remember what he had seen in the last
moments before he had been taken of Wisdom Court.

Scarlett's
face didn't change, but suddenly there were tears in her eyes. "It
was all his fault," she said "He thought he could make a deal
with the Old Ones." She paused. "I don't know, Matt. I suppose
that's the way they work. They get ordinary people to do evil things
for them. They used him. He really thought he was helping me." She
let out a sob and Matt wrapped his arms around her and she buried he
face in his chest held her tighter. He felt his shirt dampen with
tear though she wasn't sobbing any more. "Thank-you." She
whispered.

The
building shivered a second time. It wasn't as strong as it was before
but they both felt it.

"You
know that Hong Kong is dying," Scarlett said. "The chairman told
me. They're doing it deliberately. They want to turn it into what
they call a necropolis. A city of the dead."

"I
saw some of it last night," Matt said "It was horrible."

She
brought herself closer if possible. "Don't tell me. I lived in it.
I can't belive I didn't see what was going on." She sighed. "What's
going to happen to us, Matt. Are we going to be killed?"

"They
think they've beaten us, but they haven't. The others are still out
there. And you and me. . ."

"What
about us?"

"They
put us together because they want to crow over us. But that's their
mistake. Now it's time to go to sleep I'll tell you more tomorrow."

It
was true she was sleepy. Her eye lids where already closing. "All
right Matt, Good night." She yawned and Snuggled closer to Matt.
"Good night Scarlett." he said yawning before going to sleep
himself.

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